Engineers secure £1.6m UK Centre of Excellence in Daventry

Motor sport engineers JRM has secured a £1.6 million grant to create a UK Centre of Excellence.
Jason King, managing director of JRM, of Daventry.Jason King, managing director of JRM, of Daventry.
Jason King, managing director of JRM, of Daventry.

JRM, based at the Drayton Fields Industrial Estate, in Rutherford Way, Daventry, has been awarded the funding by the South East Midlands Local Enterprise Partnership (SEMLEP).

It will allow the company to consolidate its three sites - one in Bicester and two in Daventry - to build the state-of-the-art centre in Rutherford Way.

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Managing director Jason King said: “Our new Centre of Excellence will make us a market leader.

The current premises of JRM.The current premises of JRM.
The current premises of JRM.

“We will become a company able not just to design and manufacture products but also test and approve them in our Quality Control department.

“This means we will bring together under one roof all our capabilities as an advanced engineering company and at the same time bring in new ones – for industries locally and oversees.

“Historically we have worked in the automotive sector with the likes of Jaguar, Subaru and Nissan. Moving forward though we see no reason we can’t also break into the aerospace and medical sectors.”

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Hilary Chipping, Chief Executive, SEMLEP, said: “This new Centre of Excellence will reinforce our reputation in the South East Midlands for innovative technical testing and automotive expertise.

“We are confident this will be a centre that will not just benefit Daventry and Northamptonshire but also the UK as a whole.”

The new centre will feature a high-tech 3D printer that can change quickly between several different materials, including titanium, aluminium, and steel.

It will create low volume, high complexity items, such as a prototype for a Formula 1 car or an item for a classic car that cannot be bought elsewhere in the world.

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There will also be a High Frequency Driver in The Loop rig built to Formula 1 standards, enabling manufacturers to investigate, and engineer new vehicle concepts and systems, as well as allow drivers to hone their racing skills in the e-world.

Mr King said: “We will launch as a low volume vehicle manufacturer for the first time. We want to show that we are not just a race team, but that we are an expert all round engineering company.”

The centre will also include space for small and large businesses and the centre will be fitted with solar panels to provide at least 75 per cent of the energy needs for the site.

In addition, the site will feature electrical charging points, a 350kW solar farm and will retain the flexible hours that have become a new normal during COVID-19, to reduce petrol consumption.

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